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Songs From My Dad

Like most people, my first discoveries of music were made while perusing the records and CD’s in my parents collection. Whenever I had the house to myself I would just pick something randomly and put it on. The collection my dad had was mostly late 60’s and early 70’s rock, so I learned a lot about The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Doors, etc. He also had a pretty extensive blues set, and by the time I was old enough to drive I was listening almost exclusively to stuff like Charlie Musselwhite, Gary Moore, B.B. King, and a smattering of other artists ranging from the electrified Chicago blues down to the style you find in Yazoo county.

Around this time my dad starting giving me sets of 3 CD’s every year for my birthday, and these were the albums he considered essential to any young person’s musical journey. The first year he gave me Highway 61 Revisited, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, and Electric Ladyland. So these were the three records by his three favorite artists that he felt most important to lead me in the right path. I think his plan worked, because I still listen to and love those album today. The following year was a continuation of the first, with Exile On Main Street, Pearl, and Tea For The Tillerman. By this time I had started making my own musical discoveries of more current bands that weren’t just things you heard on the radio, and I think it was because he took the time to give me a strong foundation to start with that I’ve continued my journey.